| John A. Haigh | |
| Occupation: | Lecturer |
| Birth Place: | Des Moines, Iowa, US |
John A. Haigh (born 1954) is the co-director of the Mossavar-Rahmani Center for Business and Government and a lecturer in public policy at Harvard Kennedy School (HKS).[1] He was executive dean of Harvard Kennedy School from 2005 through 2017. He previously served as senior vice president for Emerging Initiatives at AT&T Wireless, and as president of AT&T's International Ventures.[2] A graduate of Grinnell College (1976) and Harvard Kennedy School (1982), Haigh began his professional career as a research associate at Resources for the Future and later served as a research associate in the Energy and Environmental Policy Center at Harvard.
John Haigh joined HKS as executive dean in 2005, serving as its chief operating officer. He was appointed co-director of the Mossavar-Rahmani Center for Business and Government in 2011 where he is the co-director with Larry Summers, former secretary of the Treasury and president of Harvard. He teaches seminars on topics at the intersection of business and government at Harvard Kennedy School and in the Joint Degree Program between HKS and Harvard Business School. He conducts research on technology innovation and regulation, as well as issues of industrial policy and geopolitics.
Prior to joining HKS he was at AT&T and AT&T Wireless, beginning in 1996, where he held a variety of strategy and leadership positions. At AT&T he initially focused on strategy and business development issues, and was later promoted to be president of AT&T's International Ventures where he served on multiple boards of directors where AT&T held minority positions and oversaw international operations. He then was senior vice president for Emerging Initiatives at AT&T Wireless, focusing on innovation efforts to develop new wireless services.[3]
Born in Des Moines, Iowa, Haigh attended Lincoln High School and Grinnell College in Grinnell, Iowa. He graduated with honors with a B.A. in economics and political science in 1976. He was elected to Phi Beta Kappa and was the President's Medalist. He also served as captain of the men's baseball and basketball teams (1975 and 1976). He was a 1st team Academic All-American and 1st Team All-Conference in basketball in both 1975 and 1976. He attended Harvard Kennedy School on a full scholarship, earning a Master in Public Policy (MPP) degree with an emphasis on applied microeconomic issues in regulated industries in 1982.